Two New Nighttime Spectaculars for Disney World’s 50th Anniversary!

Good Morning America has announced more details about Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary, including new entertainment in Magic Kingdom, Epcot, and Animal Kingdom. In this post, we’ll cover everything revealed and offer some thoughts on what’s coming to Magic Kingdom this fall for the celebration!

The latest GMA first look follows one a couple months ago, which showcased the new character costumes for Minnie & Mickey Mouse and the transformation of Magic Kingdom’s iconic Cinderella Castle with new sparkling embellishments. It also shared concept art for the “Beacons of Magic” nighttime projections for the icons in the four Walt Disney World theme parks: Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, EPCOT, and Hollywood Studios.

The “World’s Most Magical Celebration” will kick off on October 1, 2021 and last for 18 months. The event will be celebrated at all four theme parks throughout 2021 and 2022. You can read everything that’s officially announced and rumored for the festivities in our Ultimate Guide to Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary!

Today’s announcement is that two new nighttime spectaculars and one new daytime lagoon show will debut at Walt Disney World on October 1, 2021 for the start of the World’s Most Magical Celebration!

First, there’s Harmonious at Epcot.

The news that Harmonious will debut on October 1, 2021 doesn’t come as a huge surprise since installation has been progressing since late last year and testing actively began on the full show after park hours (and has been seen from the Crescent Lake resorts) throughout June 2021.

Nevertheless, it’s great to have this officially confirmed. Walt Disney World had been silent about the future on Harmonious for a while, including in the announcement that fireworks would return to Magic Kingdom and Epcot this summer.

Although not shared on Good Morning America, Disney has also announced new daytime entertainment, so let’s jump to Animal Kingdom for a look at “Disney KiteTails.” This will come alive several times daily at the Discovery River Amphitheater beginning October 1, 2021.

Performers will fly wind catchers and kites of all shapes and sizes, while out on the water with elaborate three-dimensional kites– some stretching to 30 feet long–will depict Disney animal friends, including Simba, Zazu, Baloo, and King Louie. These colorful creations will dance through the sky to the beat of favorite Disney songs in an uplifting, vibrant experience for the whole family.

Also quietly revealed in the press release is the new “Mickey’s Celebration Cavalcade” in Magic Kingdom, which will be performed several times throughout the day.

This will feature Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Daisy Duck, Goofy and Pluto, and Chip ‘n’ Dale sporting their sparkling new EARidescent fashions for Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary. We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but this probably rules out a new daytime parade–or Magic Happens being imported from Disneyland–at least for the start of the World’s Most Magical Celebration in October. (Maybe in 2022!)

These eight characters will also be featured in special golden character sculptures debuting October 1, 2021 at Magic Kingdom. In the artist rendering above, you can see Mickey and Minnie shining in the sunlight near Cinderella Castle.

There will be 50 characters total in this series of sculptures that will be displayed across all four Walt Disney World theme parks. More of the “Disney Fab 50” will soon be revealed as excitement builds for the big day, as well as the surprising ways you’ll be able to interact with these beautiful sculptures as part of Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary celebration.

This is something Tokyo Disney Resort has done several times for its anniversaries.

Usually, there’s a piece of merchandise (see photo of Sarah using the Tokyo DisneySea anniversary wand) that activates a portal and special effect on the statue. Given the verbiage in the press release, it sounds like this might be akin to that. Think of this as somewhat similar to the wands in Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Finally, the main event: “Disney Enchantment” is a new nighttime spectacular debuting at Magic Kingdom on October 1, 2021.

Disney Enchantment was created to launch with the World’s Most Magical Celebration, and per the company, “this evening extravaganza will take you on a journey filled with adventure, wonder and empowerment. Inspiring everyone to believe in magic, Disney Enchantment will feature music, enhanced lighting, stunning fireworks and, for the first time, immersive projection effects that extend from Cinderella Castle down Main Street, U.S.A.”

This reveal was really light on details, with a single piece of concept art and the name quickly flashing on screen during Good Morning America–and that’s it. We’ve previously heard a couple of “competing” rumors about the new night show debuting at Magic Kingdom, both of which we’ve shared in prior Walt Disney World news & rumor roundups.

The first would be more akin to Once Upon a Time; effectively a pre or post-show for Happily Ever After. However, given the phrasing (calling it a nighttime spectacular) and the limited details of what this will entail, we suspect it’s a temporary replacement for Happily Ever After.

That’s exactly what the other rumor indicated–that Disney Enchantment would be a fully-fledged limited run fireworks show. In previous posts, we’ve likened this to Disneyland Forever or Celebrate Tokyo Disneyland.

The former debuted for Disneyland’s 60th Anniversary Diamond Celebration and focused more on film franchises with some Walt Disney dialogue scattered in, whereas the latter was a love letter to attractions around Tokyo Disneyland for that park’s 35th Anniversary. “Remember… Dreams Come True” at Disneyland would be another relevant comparison, if you’re familiar with that.

Our hope is that Disney Enchantment at Magic Kingdom is more akin to Celebrate Tokyo Disneyland or Remember… Dreams Come True.

Even though Celebrate Tokyo Disneyland was created for Japan, most of the projections in that nighttime spectacular could be recycled since it was designed for Cinderella Castle and the two parks share many of the same attractions.

Country Bears, Big Thunder, and goats–this scene really has it all! 😂

A post shared by Sarah Bricker (@sarahbricker) on


Seriously, roughly 90% of that 35th Anniversary show could be reused, with the rest only lightly modified. My only request/demand is that the Country Bears riding Big Thunder Mountain Railroad segment (seriously, watch Sarah’s clip above!!!) is longer in the Magic Kingdom version. Fifteen minutes sounds about right.

That show featured a “tour” of each land, with scenes from the Tiki Room, Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, Mark Twain Riverboat, Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain, Space Mountain, and Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters. Celebrate Tokyo Disneyland also had a decent amount of characters to appeal to more casual guests (including a “surprise” appearance by Mickey Mouse in Cinderella Castle’s balcony). But I digress. This isn’t about that show, and Disney Enchantment could end up being totally different.

Additionally, the Main Street projections make a lot of sense. Disneyland has been doing this since that park’s 60th Anniversary, with the Diamond Celebration fireworks having projections up and down Main Street.

More recently, Mickey’s Mix Magic carried forward the legacy, often times minus pyro. Disneyland Forever and other fireworks have also since been modified to have a “B-mode” with projections and other effects only when it’s too windy for pyro. Likewise, projections in World Bazaar at Tokyo Disneyland have become standard beginning with the 35th Anniversary.

One unquestionable upside of the Main Street projection mapping is that it spreads out crowds during fireworks. This is hugely advantageous at Disneyland, where congestion in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle began hours before fireworks time.

The introduction of projections up and down Main Street helped spread guests out more, as there were many more interesting viewpoints and visuals. Given the crowd forecasts for October through (at least) December 2021, this will be hugely beneficial for easing congestion in the hub. It’ll still undoubtedly be bad, but not as bad as it could be.

Finally, we’ve had many readers ask why the return of Fantasmic, Festival of Fantasy, and other entertainment on temporary hiatus was not announced. There are several reasons this has not yet occurred, most revolving around staffing shortages and unique wrinkles of productions with performers.

Beyond that, anything with the words “coming back” would never be in a reveal on Good Morning America. This type of tease is directed at a very casual audience–most definitely not readers of blogs like this one. Mentioning returning entertainment would only give rise to unwanted “there’s stuff missing right now?” questions from those planning trips prior to October.

In other words, we wouldn’t read anything at all into existing entertainment that was not mentioned during the segment. While it’s entirely possible much of that isn’t back by October, today’s sneak peek should not be viewed as indicative of what won’t be shown during Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary. More announcements are still to come.

Ultimately, we are really happy there’s now official confirmation about nighttime entertainment for Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary. This is seriously great, and incredibly reassuring that the World’s Most Magical Celebration will be a blockbuster event worthy of a half-century celebration.

However we may feel about the daytime visual blight of Harmonious, it’ll be nice to finally enjoy its fruits during the evening hours–and hopefully that show gives Epcot a much-needed shot in the arm. Disney KiteTails looks like a cute diversion that’ll add something to Animal Kingdom’s lineup, too. The statues should also be great enhancements that will reinforce the celebratory spirit throughout all four parks.

With that said, the big thing for us is Disney Enchantment. No matter what it is, a new fireworks show in Magic Kingdom is always cause for excitement. Personally, we really hope it pays tribute to 50 years of the Magic Kingdom. Given that everything else debuting on that date will lean heavily into characters and intellectual property, we think that it makes sense for the fireworks in Walt Disney World’s flagship park to leverage nostalgia of the parks themselves.

Not only is that the essence of a golden anniversary, but it’s a way to differentiate the shows and spectaculars from one another. If this is on par with Celebrate Tokyo Disneyland or Remember Dreams Come True (but with more pyro than both since it’s Walt Disney World), this will be a memorable show that lifelong Walt Disney World fans will absolutely adore. Here’s hoping!

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!

YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think of the latest announcements for Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary? Excited for the newly-announced Disney Enchantement or KiteTails? Thoughts on the Disney Fab 50 character statues? Happy that Harmonious now has an official debut date? Think Disney has any surprises for the anniversary up its sleeves? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment of Walt Disney World’s 50th Anniversary celebration? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

38 Responses to “Two New Nighttime Spectaculars for Disney World’s 50th Anniversary!”
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